Month: August 2015

To me the most exciting part of releasing a book is discovering the reaction of readers. After all that work I can’t help but wonder…did they like the end result? Well, reviews are coming in and the results are great, people like Still Life and I could not be happier.

But, recently a frustrated reviewer contacted me. It seems she was unable to post her review on purchase sites and since she is not a participant in social media she couldn’t post there either. So, I decided to post her review here. I love that, much like a book author, this reader was so adamant about wanting to get her own words out into the world.

What follows is Barb W.’s review of STILL LIFE. Thanks, Barb!

D.B. Kennison’s first novel, Still Life, was a roller coaster of emotions. Filled with suspense, adventure, romance and a “who done it” plot. From the very beginning when Randi Lassiter, a jilted wife, who is a real estate agent by day and a PI at night working for a divorce attorney, nabbing adulterers with her colorful, purple hair cohort CJ are in a dark alley late at night to photograph a two timing husband through a window in a seedy hotel, the Bells. To the nail biting last page you feel you are traveling right beside them, even seeing and smelling the crime scenes. You are right with them through all the twist and turns they experience while helping, usually unsolicited help, in catching an unlikely serial killer.

Enter Homicide Detective Jon Bricksen a detective from the big city of Milwaukee, where he was fed up with all the crime and murders and a broken romance. He thought the quiet, quaint, laid back town of Mt. Ouisco would be a refuge for him and his dog, Dammit, only to be drawn in to a series of murders that also lead him to meet Randi. Their first meeting, at the Hometown Cafe, where Randi and CJ were being held for questioning after the discovery of the body outside the motel, sets the tone for a fiery and explosive relationship which started by Randi thinking Jon was eye candy but a ball-scratching egomaniac and Jon thinking she was a interfering scatter brained local…the sparks flew and it was head to head battering from there.

I am looking forward to reading more of Randi’s adventures.

Caution: This book will keep you on the edge of your seat and the suspense will keep you up all night…don’t read before going to bed.

~Barb W.

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A culmination of my work, in the form of 284 pages, is born. It’s a surreal experience and one that my husband says I should bask in, for there will never be another first novel. I may go on to write bigger, bolder books, and perhaps by some miracle even pull a real literary project out of my brain someday, but it will never feel exactly this sensational ever again. Maybe that’s why I can’t stop smiling even as I type this post.

Cross your fingers and wish me some measure of success. If you read STILL LIFE, I would love for you to take the time and leave a review. Whether it’s on one of the sites where you bought the book, on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, or in the comment section right here, know that I’m prepared for your opinions and welcome your honesty.

Additionally, I feel I owe all of my followers an apology for my absence and lack of blogging. Preparing for a book launch is exhausting, especially when one has a day job and summer landscaping projects.

Getting “social media ready” is work! (Still don’t know what I’m doing-LOL) Organizing a launch party/book signings, putting together media kits, etc. is all new to me and it has been time consuming.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I’m just whining a bit. And yes, there is a difference. Whining is a higher pitch used to express my normal speech (and one that sometimes causes my dogs to howl uncontrollably). Complaining is me finding fault with absolutely everything.

It will all be worth it once the book is released. Then I can focus on staying in touch with the wonderful connections I’ve made through all that social media.

On top of that, I have been working on book 2 in the series so that there isn’t too much lag time for fans who want to follow the quirky characters they meet in Mt. Ouisco. I will blog more on this process later…promise.